Read access time of an electrical fuse varies depending on various factors, such as the resistance of the programmed fuse, manufacturing process, operational voltage, and temperature (collectively PVT) variations, etc. In some approaches, to cover a wide range of variations, the width of a read signal pulse and thus the read access time of the electrical fuse are loosely set. The width of the read signal, however, is proportional to the time the fuse is being subjected to an electrical stress by a read current. As a result, in some conditions, the fuse is subject to an electrical stress longer than necessary when the fuse is read. The maximum cumulative number of read accesses for the lifetime of the fuse is therefore reduced. The electrical stress is worse with a higher read voltage.
Like reference symbols in the various drawings indicate like elements.